South Africa
Mindset Health Channel
Activity Dates
2003 – ongoing
Activity Summary
Mindset Health Channel provides an opportunity for health care workers in resource poor settings to access new information and build skills on-demand in order to improve service delivery to their clients. The innovative distance learning infrastructure satellite broadcasts and “datacasts” video, multimedia and print educational materials to clinics and hospitals so that healthcare workers can access content on demand, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, off computers and televisions. Mindset also provides culturally appropriate and accessible educational HIV and AIDS content to the public through waiting rooms of clinics and hospitals. Sites need only have access to electricity in order to run a television, satellite and computer.
Since its pilot phase in 2003 and inception in April 2004, this powerful partnership between Mindset Network, the Department of Health, and Sentech has expanded to more than 300 primary health care facilities and produced over 100 video hours of educational material in Zulu, Xhosa, Sotho, English and Afrikaans.
Objectives
Mindset Health Channel aims to increase the success of Government/public prevention, care, management and treatment programmes of HIV and AIDS and other major diseases; address inequalities to health education and communication by using satellite technology to reach rural areas; and strengthen the public healthcare system by empowering healthcare workers and patients. Mindset’s specific objectives for its target audiences are:
Health care workers
- Increased knowledge about HIV, AIDS and TB
- Increased positive attitudes toward people living with HIV
- Increased motivation towards their work with people living with HIV
- Improvement in knowledge and usage of IT and ICT technology to access health education
Public/Patients
- Increased knowledge about HIV, AIDS and TB
- Increased positive attitudes toward people living with HIV
- Increased motivation to take up public health services such as VCT and to adhere to programmes
- Increase in positive attitudes towards reducing high risk behaviour
Implementation
Content
Mindset develops new content on prevention and treatment and sources and repackages existing content an array of topics including abstinence, delaying sexual debut, faithfulness, VCT, PMTCT, ART, OVC, living positively with HIV, and the role of nutrition, among others. Mindset concluded agreements for the free use of high-quality broadcast content from an extensive set of media content providers, including Community Health Media Trust, Soul City, Kagiso, Ochre Media, Society for Family Health, World Health Organization, LoveLife, and South Africa Broadcasting Corporation.
Sample content areas include:
- Mindset provides a comprehensive, effective Health Care Workers’ HIV and AIDS education through an HIV/AIDS and TB curriculum in video, computer-based multimedia (CBMM) and print.
- In support of the national ARV rollout, Mindset trained healthcare workers on implementing the ARV program at work, in parallel with a treatment literacy program for the general public.
- The health channel identifies, films and makes available professional lectures and conferences so that HCWs can keep abreast with current developments in the field without being limited by time and financial constraints.
- Mindset Health produced video and DVD material to support pre-service training of nurses and face-to-face professional training courses in HIV and AIDS.
- The patient/the general public broadcast channel is both an educational and a compelling and entertaining viewing experience incorporating drama, public service announcements, documentaries, and interviews and discussions.
- Mindset Health produced a 72 minute public documentary series for the public/patients focusing on high risk sexual behaviour. Additionally, a variety of short programmes with coverage of national health events, topical news stories, frequently asked questions, and interviews were produced for the public.
Delivery and Development
Maintenance and improvement of the distance learning infrastructure requires monthly broadcast scheduling and updates, quarterly interface and web updates, development of the Content Management System, database development, and development of datacast process automation and tracking, among other activities.
Channels
The Mindset Health Public Channel has daily television broadcasts from 7:30am-5:30pm.
The Mindset Health Care Workers Channel has a daily television broadcast that healthcare workers can access content “on demand,” 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, off computers and televisions.
Community Involvement
To encourage greater involvement of the community, community volunteers and lay health workers received on-site training on technical topics, use of the programming, and facilitation to increase the usage and impact of programs.
Continuous Professional Development
Mindset is expanding the channel’s Continuous Professional Development (CPD) activities for HCWs and will soon provide career development accreditation for Health care workers using the site.
Training
Regional Coordinators maintain close working relationships with provinces and regional/local NGOs to ensure that they take ownership of the Channel and are trained to support the sites. In addition, Regional Coordinators drive the Professional Development (particularly in-service training) and Outreach activities on the ground.
Outreach
Mindset Health supports outreach activities conducted by the Community Health Media Trust (CHMT) at Mindset Health sites. Mindset trains CHMT outreach workers in how to facilitate the public channel content. CHMT then facilitates the public channel at Mindset Health sites and trains health promoters/health care workers at the sites to facilitate the content.
Marketing
Mindset Health works to build Mindset Health brand awareness, appropriately position the channel, and increase the usage of Mindset Health amongst users, mainly HCWs and site managers. Site Awards are given to motivate site managers and users to make optimum use of the channel. Television adverts promote the HCW and public channels. Mindset gets media exposure in targeted health media in the form of press releases and editorials. Marketing also focuses on establishing the credibility of the channel through the dissemination of research findings in conferences and stakeholder forums/media.
Scaling Up
Mindset is continuously adding additional sites in the public health sector to increase reach.
Audiences
Health care workers, general public/patients
Partners
Mindset Network, National Department of Health, Sentech, Community Health Media Trust, Soul City, Kagiso, Ochre Media, Society for Family Health, World Health Organization, LoveLife, and South Africa Broadcasting Corporation
Back to South Africa
Note about materials: Some of the materials and resources listed on each page are available in their full form, others are represented by image or citation only. For more information and resources, go to www.jhuccp.org
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